AN IMPROVED METHOD FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF ULTRAMICROELECTRODES

In this paper different techniques to decrease stray capacitance effec ts on fast-scan cyclic voltammetry with ultramicroelectrodes are discu ssed, The use of new methods of connecting the electrode microwire and the development of effective shieldings for the electrode resulted in a drop of a factor of 5 in the capacitive currents obtained in a stan dard electrolyte solution. Furthermore, a new method for constructing ultramicroelectrodes has been developed, which is almost 100% effectiv e in supressing stray capacitance, Electrodes down to radii of 1 pm ha ve been constructed. The electrodes have been used to determine the ra te constant of heterogeneous electron transfer for the reduction of an thracene. The results clearly demonstrate that the proposed methods ar e effective for the decrease the stray capacitance and easy to perform .